The Velvet Underground & Nico Album Cover | recordart The Velvet Underground & Nico Album Cover rockdoc999 7 Comments The album “The Velvet Underground & Nico” is remarkable for many reasons–not least the music. a. It is one of only two albums that I know of that names the cover designer rather than the band or the record’s title on the front (the other being Swedish band bob hund‘s 1996 LP “Omslag: Martin Kann“.) b. The cover provoked two lawsuits (more on those later). c. Gatefold covers had generally only been used for double albums. Elvis Presley’s “Elvis Is Back!” from 1956 is said to be the first gatefold cover for a single LP and “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” was not released until two months after the Velvets’ album. In 1965 Andy Warhol became The Velvet Underground‘s manager and he booked them into New York’s Scepter Studios in April 1966 to record the group’s first album which was de facto produced by studio owner Norman Dolph rather than by Warhol.

Warhol insisted that chanteuse Nico (real name Christa Päffgen) sing on the album and she sang on three songs. For unknown reasons some songs were rerecorded and some new songs recorded by producer Tom Wilson in Los Angeles later that year. Wilson was a staff producer for Columbia (and later Verve) Records and had produced three of Bob Dylan‘s early albums (“Another Side of Bob Dylan“, “The Times They Are A’Changin’“, four tracks on “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan“, “Bringing It All Back Home“) including the hit single “Like a Rolling Stone“. Warhol offered the album to Columbia Records, who turned it down! Then through the Andy Warhol association Verve Records agreed to release it. Logically enough, as Nico was not a member of the group the album’s title was “The Velvet Underground & Nico. The “&” emphasizing the fact. Warhol gave his Banana painting to the band for the album cover. The removable banana on the front was difficult to produce and delayed the album’s release until March 1967. Acy R.

Lehman, who designed the cover, decided on the gatefold to be able to include photos of the band members taken by Paul Morrissey, and colour photos by Verve photographer Hugo. I have seen the large band photo on the rear cover credited to Andy Warhol, so I am not sure it was by him or, as stated in the album credits, by Hugo. The rear cover photograph showed actor Eric Emerson the lights projected behind the band with his inverted face superimposed on the picture of Lou Reed‘s head. This is commonly called the “Torso” version”. Emerson was in need of money as he had been charged with drug offenses and sued Verve Records to pay him for the use of his photograph. Verve refused to pay and recalled as many copies as it could and stuck a large black sticker over the offending photograph. On subsequent printings of the album sleeve the photograph was airbrushed to obscure Emerson’s portrait before the album could be reissued in June 1967.

This delay badly affected the album’s sales; only about 30,000 copies being sold between 1967 and 1972 – I must be one of the early buyers as I bought my copy in late 1967 on the strength of the review in Rolling Stone. Brian Eno is quoted as saying in 1982 “everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band.” – obviously, with one exception – me! There were promo copies distributed with the “Torso” cover which had white or yellow record labels. I think all promos were mono versions with “Torso” rear cover. There are three versions of the cover of the original American release: a first state with the “torso” rear cover, a second state with the sticker over the upper part of the torso picture and the third state with Emerson airbrushed out. The front cover of the mono version. The front cover of the stereo version. Note the lower positioning of the banana. The “first state” torso rear cover. Below: the airbrushed “third state” rear cover. The rear cover with the sticker covering Emerson’s face.

This album has never been out of print since it was originally released. There have been several variations on the cover design and recent re-issues have once again reverted to the original “torso” rear cover photo. Some re-issues have appeared with coloured vinyl (yellow or red) and a limited edition by Newbury Comics is on black and yellow vinyl. The original UK version was released with a single cover and the banana was not peelable. A later German re-issue showed only the peeled banana and other re-issues have added the album’s title to the front cover. There are at least three picture disc versions of the album; two from Russia on the Vinyl Lovers label (one in a die-cut card sleeve and one in a clear plastic sleeve. These have the title at upper left and “Andy Warhol” at lower right while the third picture disc has all the text at upper left, including “Andy Warhol”. Re-issue with title on front. German 1975 re-issue with unusual cover. Vinyl Lovers picture disc in die-cut card sleeve. I mentioned at the start of this essay that the album was the cause of two law suits.

The first was Eric Emerson’s suit for compensation for the use of his face on the cover. This was resolved by Verve airbrushing out the offending face. However it seems that the hatchet has been buried since as recent re-issues have reinstated the torso picture on the back. The second law suit was when The Warhol Foundation in 2012 licensed the banana image for use on smart phone and iPad accessories. Lou Reed and John Cale sued the Foundation, claiming that Warhol had given them the image and that The Warhol Foundation did not have the right to license it to third parties. The case was settled out of court the following year. Neither party has revealed the terms of the settlement. The Velvet Underground & Nico is a great album with a great cover that is one of the ten most recognisable covers, alongside “Sgt Pepper“, “The Dark Side of the Moon“, “Sticky Fingers“, Nirvana’s “Nevermind“, Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run“, “Never Mind the Bollocks–Here’s the Sex Pistols“–and you can name the others.

Share this: The Story Behind The Velvet Underground's Most Iconic Album Cover | The Huffington Post The Story Behind The Velvet Underground's Most Iconic Album Cover 10/28/2013 12:40 pm ET | Updated Oct 28, 2013 110 One of Lou Reed's lasting legacies -- besides founding The Velvet Underground and introducing the world to the depths of feedback loops -- will forever be his impact on the way the world sees bananas. The late singer, who passed away of a liver-related ailment this weekend , helped popularize one of the most recognizable pieces of pop artwork -- a bright yellow piece of fruit that adorned the cover of The Velvet Underground & Nico's debut album . The banana itself is, of course, the handiwork of Andy Warhol, who crafted the image and slapped it on the cover of his pet band's first record in 1967. Warhol served as the manager and patron saint of the now iconic art rock band that surprisingly sold just 30,000 albums in its first five years . The original album cover allowed fans to peel back the banana skin as a sticker, revealing the fruit of a nude-colored banana underneath.

The sexually-charged effect was difficult for manufacturers to pull off (the time it took to perfect the peel was part of the reason behind the album's delayed release), but MGM deemed it warranted, since Warhol's stamp of approval was bound to go far in the 1960s. " He just made it possible for us to be ourselves and go right ahead with it because he was Andy Warhol," Reed once said. "In a sense he really did produce [the album] because he was this umbrella that absorbed all the attacks when we weren't large enough to be attacked." Alas, the record was hardly a commercial success. It was only in the decades after VU's breakup that the band became a cult favorite, transforming their vintage peel-off sticker album into a rare collector's item and a symbol for the protopunk genre. In fact, nearly 50 years after the release, the band and the Andy Warhol foundation would battle over who reserved the right to market the now-coveted banana as their own . To honor Reed's association with pop art history, we're showcasing the banana's ever-present influence on the world of contemporary art.

Scroll through the images below to see how 22 contemporary artists commissioned by Société Perrier reimagined the fruit today. Here Are 8 Ways To Reimagine The Iconic Banana Here Are 8 Ways To Reimagine The Iconic Banana 1 The Velvet Underground | Biography & History | AllMusic The Velvet Underground Biography by Richie Unterberger The quintessential bohemian New York band of the '60s that fused art, rock, and poetry in a fashion that proved incalculably influential. google+ Artist Biography by Richie Unterberger Few rock groups can claim to have broken so much new territory, and maintain such consistent brilliance on record, as the Velvet Underground during their brief lifespan. It was the group's lot to be ahead of, or at least out of step with, their time. The mid- to late '60s was an era of explosive growth and experimentation in rock, but the Velvets ' innovations -- which blended the energy of rock with the sonic adventurism of the avant-garde, and introduced a new degree of social realism and sexual kinkiness into rock lyrics -- were too abrasive for the mainstream to handle.

During their time, the group experienced little commercial success; though they were hugely appreciated by a cult audience and some critics, the larger public treated them with indifference or, occasionally, scorn. The Velvets ' music was too important to languish in obscurity, though; their cult only grew larger and larger in the years following their demise, and continued to mushroom through the years. By the 1980s, they were acknowledged not just as one of the most important rock bands of the '60s, but one of the best of all time, and one whose immense significance cannot be measured by their relatively modest sales. Historians often hail the group for their incalculable influence upon the punk and new wave of subsequent years, and while the Velvets were undoubtedly a key touchstone of the movements, to focus upon these elements of their vision is to only get part of the story. The group was uncompromising in its music and lyrics, to be sure, sometimes espousing a bleakness and primitivism that would inspire alienated singers and songwriters of future generations.

But the band's colorful and oft-grim soundscapes were firmly grounded in strong, well-constructed songs that could be as humanistic and compassionate as they were outrageous and confrontational. The member most responsible for these qualities was guitarist, singer, and songwriter Lou Reed , whose sing-speak vocals and gripping narratives came to define street-savvy rock & roll. Reed loved rock & roll from an early age, and even recorded a doo wop-type single as a Long Island teenager in the late '50s (as a member of the Shades ). By the early '60s, he was also getting into avant-garde jazz and serious poetry, coming under the influence of author Delmore Schwartz while studying at Syracuse University. After graduation, he set his sights considerably lower, churning out tunes for exploitation rock albums as a staff songwriter for Pickwick Records in New York City. Reed did learn some useful things about production at Pickwick, and it was while working there that he met John Cale , a classically trained Welshman who had moved to America to study and perform "serious" music.

Cale , who had performed with John Cage and LaMonte Young , found himself increasingly attracted to rock & roll; Reed , for his part, was interested in the avant-garde as well as pop. Reed and Cale were both interested in fusing the avant-garde with rock & roll, and had found the ideal partners for making the vision (a very radical one for the mid-'60s) work; their synergy would be the crucial axis of the Velvet Underground 's early work. Reed and Cale (who would play bass, viola, and organ) would need to assemble a full band, making tentative steps along this direction by performing together in the Primitives (which also included experimental filmmaker Tony Conrad and avant-garde sculptor Walter DeMaria ) to promote a bizarre Reed -penned Pickwick single ("The Ostrich"). By 1965, the group was a quartet called the Velvet Underground , including Reed , Cale , guitarist Sterling Morrison (an old friend of Reed 's), and drummer Angus MacLise .

MacLise quit before the band's first paying gig, claiming that accepting money for art was a sellout; the Velvets quickly recruited drummer Maureen Tucker , a sister of one of Morrison 's friends. Even at this point, the Velvets were well on their way to developing something quite different. Their original material, principally penned and sung by Reed , dealt with the hard urban realities of Manhattan, describing drug use, sadomasochism, and decadence in cool, unapologetic detail in "Heroin," "I'm Waiting for the Man," "Venus in Furs," and "All Tomorrow's Parties." These were wedded to basic, hard-nosed rock riffs, toughened by Tucker 's metronome beats; the oddly tuned, rumbling guitars; and Cale 's occasional viola scrapes. It was an uncommercial blend to say the least, but the Velvets got an unexpected benefactor when artist and all-around pop art icon Andy Warhol caught the band at a club around the end of 1965. Warhol quickly assumed management of the group, incorporating them into his mixed-media/performance art ensemble, the Exploding Plastic Inevitable.

By spring 1966, Warhol was producing their debut album. Warhol was also responsible for embellishing the quartet with Nico , a mysterious European model/chanteuse with a deep voice whom the band accepted rather reluctantly, viewing her spectral presence as rather ornamental. Reed remained the principal lead vocalist, but Nico did sing three of the best songs on the group's debut, The Velvet Underground & Nico , often known as "the banana album" because of its distinctive Warhol -designed cover. Recognized today as one of the core classic albums of rock, it featured an extraordinarily strong set of songs, highlighted by "Heroin," "All Tomorrow's Parties," "Venus in Furs," "I'll Be Your Mirror," "Femme Fatale," "Black Angel's Death Song," and "Sunday Morning." The sensational drug-and-sex items (especially "Heroin") got most of the ink, but the more conventional numbers showed Reed to be a songwriter capable of considerable melodicism, sensitivity, and almost naked introspection. The album's release was not without complications, though. First, it wasn't issued until nearly a year after it was finished, due to record-company politics and other factors.

The group's association with Warhol and the Exploding Plastic Inevitable had already assured them of a high (if notorious) media profile, but the music was simply too daring to fit onto commercial radio; "underground" rock radio was barely getting started at this point, and in any case may well have overlooked the record at a time when psychedelic music was approaching its peak. The album only reached number 171 in the charts, and that's as high as any of their LPs would get upon original release. Those who heard it, however, were often mightily impressed; Brian Eno once said that even though hardly anyone bought the Velvets ' records at the time they appeared, almost everyone who did formed their own bands. A cult reputation wasn't enough to guarantee a stable livelihood for a band in the '60s, and by 1967 the Velvets were fighting problems within their own ranks. Nico , never considered an essential member by the rest of the band, left or was fired sometime during the year, going on to a fascinating career of her own. The association with Warhol weakened, as the artist was unable to devote as much attention to the band as he had the previous year.

Embittered by the lukewarm reception of their album in their native New York, the Velvets concentrated on touring cities throughout the rest of the country. Amidst this tense atmosphere, the second album, White Light/White Heat , was recorded in late 1967. Each of the albums the group released while Reed led the band was an unexpected departure from all of their other LPs. White Light/White Heat was probably the most radical, focusing almost exclusively on their noisiest arrangements, over-amped guitars, and most willfully abrasive songs. The 17-minute "Sister Ray" was their most extreme (and successful) effort in this vein. Unsurprisingly, the album failed to catch on commercially, topping out at number 199. By the summer of 1968, the band had a much graver problem on its hands than commercial success (or the lack of it). A rift developed between Reed and Cale , the most creative forces in the band and, as one could expect, two temperamental egos. Reed presented the rest of the band with an ultimatum, declaring that he would leave the group unless Cale was sacked.

Morrison and Tucker reluctantly sided with Lou , and Doug Yule was recruited to take Cale 's place. The group's third album, 1969's The Velvet Underground , was an even more radical left turn than White Light/White Heat . The volume and violence had nearly vanished; the record featured far more conventional rock arrangements that were sometimes so restrained it seems as though they were making an almost deliberate attempt to avoid waking the neighbors. Yet the sound was nonetheless effective for that; the record contains some of Reed 's most personal and striking compositions, numbers like "Pale Blue Eyes" and "Candy Says" ranking among his most romantic, although cuts like "What Goes On" proved they could still rock out convincingly (though in a less experimental fashion than they had with Cale ). The approach may have confused listeners and critics, but by this time their label (MGM/Verve) was putting little promotional resources behind the band anyway. Even in the absence of Cale , the Velvets were still capable of generating compelling heat on-stage, as 1969: Velvet Underground Live (not released until the mid-'70s) confirms.

MGM was by now in the midst of an infamous "purge" of its supposedly drug-related rock acts, and the Velvets were setting their sights elsewhere. Nevertheless, they recorded about an album's worth of additional material for the label after the third LP, although it remains unclear whether this was intended for a fourth album or not. Many of the songs, though, were excellent, serving as a bridge between The Velvet Underground and 1970's Loaded ; a lot of it was officially released in the 1980s and 1990s. The beginning of the 1970s seemed to herald considerable promise for the group, as they signed to Atlantic, but at this point the personnel problems that had always dogged them finally became overwhelming. Tucker had to sit out Loaded due to pregnancy, replaced by Yule 's brother Billy . Doug Yule , according to some accounts, began angling for more power in the band.

Unexpectedly, after a lengthy residency at New York's famous Max's Kansas City club, Reed quit the band near the end of the summer of 1970, moving back to his parents' Long Island home for several months before beginning his solo career, just before the release of Loaded , his final studio album with the Velvets . Loaded was by far the group's most conventional rock album, and the most accessible one for mainstream listeners. "Rock and Roll" and "Sweet Jane" in particular were two of Reed 's most anthemic, jubilant tunes, and ones that became rock standards in the '70s. But the group's power was somewhat diluted by the absence of Tucker , and by the decision to have Doug Yule handle some of the lead vocals. Due to Reed 's departure, though, the group couldn't capitalize on any momentum it might have generated. Unwisely, the band decided to continue, though Morrison and Tucker left shortly afterward. That left Doug Yule at the helm of an act that was the Velvet Underground in name only, and the 1973 album that was billed to the group ( Squeeze ) is best forgotten, and not considered as a true Velvets release.

With Reed , Cale , and Nico establishing important solo careers of their own, and such important figures as David Bowie , Brian Eno , and Patti Smith making no bones about their debts to the band, the Velvet Underground simply became more and more popular as the years passed. In the 1980s, the original albums were reissued, along with a couple of important collections of outtakes. Hoping to rewrite the rules one last time, Reed , Cale , Morrison , and Tucker attempted to defy the odds against successful rock reunions by re-forming in the early '90s ( Nico had died in 1988). A European tour, and a live album, was completed in 1993 to mixed reviews; before a planned American jaunt could start, Reed and Cale (who have feuded constantly over the past few decades) fell out yet again, bringing the reunion to a sad close. Sterling Morrison 's death from illness in 1995 seemed to permanently ice any prospect of more projects under the Velvet Underground name, although a few of the surviving members played together when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

By that time, an impressive five-CD box set (containing all four of the studio albums issued when Reed was in the band, as well as a lot of other material) was available to enshrine the group's legacy for the ages. Cale and Reed continued with solo careers into the 21st century, but Reed underwent a liver transplant in April 2013, and although he subsequently proclaimed his strength and intention to continue performing and songwriting, he died of end-stage liver disease at his home on Long Island in October of that year. The Velvet Underground & Nico | 4chanmusic Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia The Velvet Underground & Nico Share The Velvet Underground & Nico cover design by Andy Warhol The Velvet Underground and Nico is the debut album by the highly influential band,The Velvet Underground, released in March,12,1967, featuring German singer, Nico. Although it was ignored by a majority of critics upon release (because this was before hipsters existed), it has since been cited as one of the greatest and most influential album of all time by faggots. Although it's not fully /mu/core, it's still appreciated and talked about by the /mu/ community.

Contents Edit After Andy Warhol been introduced to the Velvet Underground, he became the manager of the band, in which the Velvet Underground preformed in Andy's show, Exploding Plastic Inevitable.playing show in New York, while they still preformed, they decided to record an album. The album was Recorded around April of 1966 at Scepter Studios. by the help of Andy Warhol. and Columbia Records' sales executive, Norman Dolph. who brought an acetate disc to Columbia so the album can be distributed. A Acetate disc of the original Velvet underground and nico recordings but they decline along with Atlantic Records and Elektra Records, until Verve Records (owed by MGM Records), accepted the recordings. with help from Tom Wilson, who has worked with very influential artists, like Bob Dylan.The album consist of the Original line up of The Velvet Underground members. like Lou reed on lead vocals (also doing lead guitars and backing vocals), Sterling Morrison on guitar, John Cale on electric violin/Piano/celesta/ect, Maureen Tucker on drums, and Nico on vocals on tracks like Sunday morning, Femme fatale, All tomorrow's parties, and i'll be your mirror.

Album Cover Edit The album cover was designed by Andy Warhol, it's a banana. Early copies of the record included " Peel slowly and see", in which you peel the banana skin to reveal a pink banana. Since this was considered shocking at the time, the album art is often seen as a precursor to that of No Love Deep Web. Peeled version of the album cover lyrics and themes Edit The lyrics on The velvet underground and nico cover such topics as drugs, in which the second track, I'm Waiting for the Man, talks about a man who waiting for his dealer. Venus in Furs, which is based off the book of the same name (which has BDSM), and heroin, which involves a person experience through heroin, and There she Goes again, which is about prostitution. As you can plainly see, this album really tries it's hardest to be "gritty" and edgy and fails spectacularly, making a lot of lyrics so terrible that they're good. Lou Reed said in a interview that joining gritty subject matters and music was "obvious" and "That's the kind of stuff you might read. Why wouldn't you listen to it?

You have the fun of reading that, and you get the fun of rock on top of it", although some of the songs are not about dark themes. like Femme Fatale and i'll be your mirror TRIVIA (aka, shit i got off songfacts) Edit Lou Reed wrote Sunday morning on a Sunday morning around 6am. Andy Warhol, who helped finance the album, suggested he write a song about the paranoia associated with the effects of a drug wearing off. The Velvet Underground & Nico is ranked #13 on Rolling Stone's Top 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, calling the album "the most prophetic rock album ever made". But who actually gives a fuck about Rolling Stone Reed wrote Sunday morning for Nico but then decided not to let the German ex-model sing it. Instead he impersonated her himself.

(tfw i just learned this today and still can't get over the fact it's lou reed singing Sunday morning, did everybody knew this?, have i been this much of a retard?....) Lou Reed, John Cale, Nico, and Maureen Tucker have all recorded solo versions of I'm Waiting for the man In 2006, The Library of Congress added The Velvet Underground and nico into the National Recording Registry, in which every year, 25 sound recordings are selected, being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." Another competing band was Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. The album The Velvet Underground and Nico was finished and waiting to be released by early 1966, but Verve Records held it back in favor of releasing Zappa and the Mother's Freak Out! This provoked guitarist Sterling Morrison into spending the rest of his life complaining about Zappa, sneeringly lumping him in with "that hippie music," along with other acts like Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead.

This is ironic, considering that Zappa himself also hated the hippie scene, and in fact was mocking it the entire time the way he later would parody other musical genres. All tomorrows parties is reportedly Andy Warhol's favorite Velvet Underground song, though probably more for having Nico (born Christa Päffgen) sing the lead than Velvet Underground's part in it. It was about a 50/50 shot whether flyers and posters for Exploding Plastic Inevitable performances around this time would have Nico's name before Velvet Underground's - with Nico sometimes billed as "pop girl of '66." In the pages of the Village Voice, rock critic Richard Goldstein called Nico "half goddess, half icicle," and reviewed her, saying "She sings in perfect mellow ovals.

It sounds something like a cello getting up in the morning." Track Listing I'm Waiting For The Man - 4:39 Femme Fatale - 2:38 There She Goes Again - 2:41 I'll Be Your Mirror - 2:14 The Black Angle's Death Song - 3:11 European Son 7:46 Lou Reed - Velvet Underground - PopSpots To be notified of new PopSpots entries, follow PopSpotsNYC on Twitter: For questions or comments you can email me (Bob) here. Lou Reed - The Velvet Underground Album: THE VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO, Verve Records, 1967 Photos by Billy Name Art Direction by Dick Smith This is the front cover of the Velvet Underground's first album. It was designed by Andy Warhol. In the original first pressing of the album, under the words "PEEL SLOWLY AND SEE": one could peel off the the bright yellow banana sticker to reveal a pink (almost flesh colored (get it?)) banana inside. A year after the album's release, when it began too take too much time to hand attach the stickers, the sticker was replaced by a photograph.

(Later, Warhol would produce a similar cover for Sticky Fingers by the Rolling Stones; containing a 3-d zipper that could be unzipped to reveal a waist-view of man wearing white underpants. The banana in mid-peel. The fully-peeled banana. This is a photo of the back cover of "the banana" album. I am not sure of which venue the photo were taken (but check back). If you look in back of Lou Reed's head there is a larger picture of a man's head. A legal dispute as to the use of the man's image led to the record company covering that part of the picture in later printings of the cover . This is s shot of the left inner sleeve of the album. The liner photos are by Nat Finkelstein and Billy Name. (see or purchase their photos at natfinkelstein.com and billyname.com ) And here is shot of the right inner sleeve of the album. Album Title: White Light, White Heat, Verve Records, 1968 Produced by: Tom Wilson ...and mocked up from another angle. This is the back cover of Live at Max's Kansas City.

Max's was a longtime hangout of Warhol and his crowd, as it was was right around the corner from Andy Warhol's second and third "factories" along Union Square, just north of Greenwich Village. This was the second Warhol "factory" (1968-1973). It was located on the 6th floor of the Moorish-style Decker Building located at 33 Union Square West between 16th and 17th Street. And this was the third Warhol "factory" (1974--1984). It was located on the 3rd floor of 860 Broadway at the northeast corner of Broadway and 17th Street. For many years one could see the back of one of Andy's white wigs in the window on a fake head. This is a composite photo of the front of 56 Ludlow Street in the Lower East Side. John Cale and Sterling Morrison lived on the top floor of the 5-story walk-up.

This is 56 Ludlow at night (I forget who's in the doorway of the shot, but that's the doorway the Velvets would have entered.) And here's a close-up of that doorway with an artistic "56" in the grating. This is a panorama of Ludlow Street and 56 Ludlow looking south from Grand Street. Back from the turn of the century until the 1930's this neighborhood in the Lower East Side was swamped with poor immigrants packed into these tenements. In the 50's and 60's artists and musicians came to these sometimes rough neighborhoods for the low rents. Here's a 1965 shot of the early version of the band at 52 Ludlow Street, a few doors south of 56 Ludlow where John Cale and Sterling Morirson lived and where some early versions of Velvet Underground songs were first recorded. (The members are, from left, John Cale, Angus MacLise, Sterling Morrison, and Lou Reed.) The photo is by Donald Greenhaus. (To see/buy photos by Donald Greenhaus go to shabobba.com) Here's the door by itself.

Here's how I go on location to match up the spots, usually after finding them on Google Street views. From that same day's photoshoot by Donald Greenhaus, here's a shot from the roof of 56 Ludlow Street in the Lower East Side of Manhattan looking east. These are the buildings in the background. Also, from the Donald Greenhaus photoshoot, the band was photographed about 2 blocks away in an area called "Five Forks" where 5 streets come together. (I did this search after a website called Flaming Pablum challenged its readers to find the site.) Here's the long, curved concrete bench on which the band was sitting. The PopSpot of the scene. Another view of the area, with the bench at left. The tall building on the back, The Forward Building, left was for many years the offices of The Jewish Daily Forward - a very popular and influential Jewish newspaper in the first fifty years of this century. Map where the above photos were taken. This is a cover of a compilation Velvet Underground CD. It features an outtake from a famous series of Velvet Underground pictures which included Andy Warhol, taken by Warhol "Factory" photographer Gerard Malanga in Los Angeles California.

(To see/buy photos by Gerard Malanga, please go his website at gerardmalanga.com) Here's another book featuring an outake from the same session. The photos were taken in May 1966 behind a mansion called "The Castle," (pictured below) located at 4320 Cedarhurst Circle in the Los Felix neighborhood of Los Angeles. Film star Norma Talmadge had lived in the mansion when it was known as "The Cedars. Later Arthur Lee of the rock group Love lived here. In the mid-sixties rock groups could rent the mansion out for $500 a week while visiting L.A. Here's where the building is in location to the City of Los Angeles. And here's a close-up of the book photo in front of the large picture window in the back of the house where the group was standing looking out over Los Angeles. This is the cover of Lou's 1972 solo debut album, released by RCA records 2 years after he left the Velvet Underground. The view is a look up Park Avenue in New York. The illustration was painted by Tom Adams.

One can tell the exact location by matching up the horizontal and vertical "glass box" slabs part of the famous Lever Building on the left. Here's the scene without the album. Lever House is located at 390 Park Avenue between 53rd street and 54th Street on the west side of the Avenue. The largest part of the illustration is a Fabergé egg, jewelled toy-like eggs, which keep opening to revel more eggs, made by the jeweler Fabergé for, most famously, the Tsars of Russia as Easter gifts for their wives and mothers. Here's one on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan. (After this entry went up, Marie Fotini, chief European PopSpots correspondent, sent in this picture of the Faberge egg upon with the cover is most likely based. It's called The Spring Flowers egg. A more detailed description can found below the picture. Neither Marie nor I know how the Fabege egg, or the kiwi or hummingbirds, or the floral patter of Lou's name tie in with the album content. A future mystery to solve.) The Lou Reed compilation album below came out in 1985 from Arista.

the cover photo is by Dave Gahr. (For more information about David Gahr's photos see DavidGahr.com) There are two signs in back of Lou. One says" City Lights" which turns out to be the title of the album, not a store name. The other sign said "Little Italy Pizza." That's the clue that led me, via a 1985 phone book, to West 46th and Sixth Avenue where a Little Italy Pizza outlet once was. Without the people around, here's the old fire alarm (still there) that Lou was leaning on. A 12" section of the alarm is missing off the top. And here's the PopSpot. Right after that shot, Lou hails a cab uptown. The scene is 46th Street looking up 6th Avenue (aka Avenue of the Americas.) Again, photographed by Dave Gahr. Following the albums below is a shot of the rock club where in 1973 where Lou recorded Rock and Roll Animal (released in 1974 by RCA) and its companion volume Lou Reed Live (released in 1975 by RCA). The venue at that time was called Howard Stein's Academy of Music.

It later changed its name in 1985 to The Palladium. It's now demolished and an NYU dorm called "The Palladium" is in its pace. This next image was an advertisement for White Light/White Heat that is found in many compilations about the Velvets. It shows them in a field of grass. The photo is taken from such a steep angle that there are no clues to its location in the background. It always intrigued me because I associate the Velvet's with urban scenes not pastoral scenes. It's usually produced in high contrast so you can't see the faces of the group, but there is a version from the Velvet underground Box Set booklet in which you can make out their faces. (Here's a better version sent in by PopSpots reader Gavin Roberts after the entry was published. Thank you, Gavin.) I ended out finding where it was shot in this book that I've had for 30 years. The book is Up-Tight: The Velvet Underground Story by Victor Bockris (who also wrote the Lou Reed bio called Transformer) and Gerard Malanga, one of the major photographers of the Warhol scene.

(See Amazon.com for books about Lou Reed, Andy Warhol, and others by Victor Bockris. See itAmazon also for Gerard Malanga books or go to gerardmalanga.com) In it, there are three small photos by Steven Shore, taken in the exact location. (Steve Shore has been a photographer for over 40 years. His many books include The Velvet Years, Andy Warhol's Factory, 1965-1967 To see more of his work, see his website at: stephenshore.net ) It turns out that the photos were taken at a country " happening" (a 60's art-type party) which took place on August 1967 on the grounds of the noted architect Philip Johnson's famous Glass House in New Caanan, Connecticut to benefit the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. Merce Cunningham dancers performed on a large wooden platform to the music of abstract-musician John Cage. Then The Velvet Underground played while the assembled Connecticut/New York patricians danced the frug and watusi. I think the Velvet Underground ate in the foreground in this photo playing to the dancers.

Based on the severe drop off of the land in the back of the photo, I think that the photo for the Velvet Underground ad was taken in an open space behind the glass house near a small pond. To find this space on Google or Bing maps, search for "Ponus Ridge Road and Arrowhead Trail, New Canaan" You can actually see the Glass House on Google Street Views. To get there, search for "Ponus Ridge Road and Arrowhead Trail, New Canaan"; then drag the little Google man to the road just south of the intersection, which gets you to Street View. Then spin the man around till you see the house. Here's what it look like. You can zoom in. And finally, here's a copy of the book from which "The Velvet Underground" took its name. Tony Conrad, a filmmaker and friend of the band, who lived across the hall from John Cale on Ludlow Street, found a copy of the paperback in the street and showed it to the group.

The fact that it conveyed the idea of "underground" culture along with it's fitting the s/m theme of Lou's early song "Venus in Furs" ("Shiny, shiny, shiny boots of leather") made the name fit the group's aesthetic and began the group's legendary walk on the wild side. So that was the end of the original PopSpots entry. SCROLL DOWN FURTHER to see the origin of a famous photo of Lou at Syracuse in the ADDENDUM. AND THEN - FOLLOWING THE ADDENDUM - YOU WILL BE ABLE TO CLICK TO: "Lou Reed / Velvet Underground Part 2," a PopSpot-in-progress, to see PHOTOS OF: - 450 Grand Street The Velvet Underground | New Music And Songs | The Velvet Underground About The Velvet Underground Few rock groups can claim to have broken so much new territory, and maintain such consistent brilliance on record, as the Velvet Underground during their brief lifespan. It was the group's lot to be ahead of, or at least out of step with, their time.

The mid- to late '60s was an era of explosive growth and experimentation in rock, but the Velvets' innovations -- which blended the energy of rock with the sonic adventurism of the avant-garde, and introduced a new degree of social realism and sexual kinkiness into rock lyrics -- were too abrasive for the mainstream to handle. During their time, the group experienced little commercial success; though they were hugely appreciated by a cult audience and some critics, the larger public treated them with indifference or, occasionally, scorn. The Velvets' music was too important to languish in obscurity, though; their cult only grew larger and larger in the years following their demise, and continued to mushroom through the years. By the 1980s, they were acknowledged not just as one of the most important rock bands of the '60s, but one of the best of all time, and one whose immense significance cannot be measured by their relatively modest sales.

Historians often hail the group for their incalculable influence upon the punk and new wave of subsequent years, and while the Velvets were undoubtedly a key touchstone of the movements, to focus upon these elements of their vision is to only get part of the story. The group was uncompromising in its music and lyrics, to be sure, sometimes espousing a bleakness and primitivism that would inspire alienated singers and songwriters of future generations. But the band's colorful and oft-grim soundscapes were firmly grounded in strong, well-constructed songs that could be as humanistic and compassionate as they were outrageous and confrontational. The member most responsible for these qualities was guitarist, singer, and songwriter Lou Reed, whose sing-speak vocals and gripping narratives came to define street-savvy rock & roll. Reed loved rock & roll from an early age, and even recorded a doo wop-type single as a Long Island teenager in the late '50s (as a member of the Shades). By the early '60s, he was also getting into avant-garde jazz and serious poetry, coming under the influence of author Delmore Schwartz while studying at Syracuse University.

After graduation, he set his sights considerably lower, churning out tunes for exploitation rock albums as a staff songwriter for Pickwick Records in New York City. Reed did learn some useful things about production at Pickwick, and it was while working there that he met John Cale, a classically trained Welshman who had moved to America to study and perform "serious" music. Cale, who had performed with John Cage and LaMonte Young, found himself increasingly attracted to rock & roll; Reed, for his part, was interested in the avant-garde as well as pop. Reed and Cale were both interested in fusing the avant-garde with rock & roll, and had found the ideal partners for making the vision (a very radical one for the mid-'60s) work; their synergy would be the crucial axis of the Velvet Underground's early work. Reed and Cale (who would play bass, viola, and organ) would need to assemble a full band, making tentative steps along this direction by performing together in the Primitives (which also included experimental filmmaker Tony Conrad and avant-garde sculptor Walter DeMaria) to promote a bizarre Reed-penned Pickwick single ("The Ostrich").

By 1965, the group was a quartet called the Velvet Underground, including Reed, Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison (an old friend of Reed's), and drummer Angus MacLise. MacLise quit before the band's first paying gig, claiming that accepting money for art was a sellout; the Velvets quickly recruited drummer Maureen Tucker, a sister of one of Morrison's friends. Even at this point, the Velvets were well on their way to developing something quite different. Their original material, principally penned and sung by Reed, dealt with the hard urban realities of Manhattan, describing drug use, sadomasochism, and decadence in cool, unapologetic detail in "Heroin," "I'm Waiting for the Man," "Venus in Furs," and "All Tomorrow's Parties." These were wedded to basic, hard-nosed rock riffs, toughened by Tucker's metronome beats; the oddly tuned, rumbling guitars; and Cale's occasional viola scrapes.

It was an uncommercial blend to say the least, but the Velvets got an unexpected benefactor when artist and all-around pop art icon Andy Warhol caught the band at a club around the end of 1965. Warhol quickly assumed management of the group, incorporating them into his mixed-media/performance art ensemble, the Exploding Plastic Inevitable. By spring 1966, Warhol was producing their debut album. Warhol was also responsible for embellishing the quartet with Nico, a mysterious European model/chanteuse with a deep voice whom the band accepted rather reluctantly, viewing her spectral presence as rather ornamental. Reed remained the principal lead vocalist, but Nico did sing three of the best songs on the group's debut, The Velvet Underground & Nico, often known as "the banana album" because of its distinctive Warhol-designed cover.

Recognized today as one of the core classic albums of rock, it featured an extraordinarily strong set of songs, highlighted by "Heroin," "All Tomorrow's Parties," "Venus in Furs," "I'll Be Your Mirror," "Femme Fatale," "Black Angel's Death Song," and "Sunday Morning." The sensational drug-and-sex items (especially "Heroin") got most of the ink, but the more conventional numbers showed Reed to be a songwriter capable of considerable melodicism, sensitivity, and almost naked introspection. The album's release was not without complications, though. First, it wasn't issued until nearly a year after it was finished, due to record-company politics and other factors. The group's association with Warhol and the Exploding Plastic Inevitable had already assured them of a high (if notorious) media profile, but the music was simply too daring to fit onto commercial radio; "underground" rock radio was barely getting started at this point, and in any case may well have overlooked the record at a time when psychedelic music was approaching its peak. The album only reached number 171 in the charts, and that's as high as any of their LPs would get upon original release.

Those who heard it, however, were often mightily impressed; Brian Eno once said that even though hardly anyone bought the Velvets' records at the time they appeared, almost everyone who did formed their own bands. A cult reputation wasn't enough to guarantee a stable livelihood for a band in the '60s, and by 1967 the Velvets were fighting problems within their own ranks. Nico, never considered an essential member by the rest of the band, left or was fired sometime during the year, going on to a fascinating career of her own. The association with Warhol weakened, as the artist was unable to devote as much attention to the band as he had the previous year. Embittered by the lukewarm reception of their album in their native New York, the Velvets concentrated on touring cities throughout the rest of the country. Amidst this tense atmosphere, the second album, White Light/White Heat, was recorded in late 1967. Each of the albums the group released while Reed led the band was an unexpected departure from all of their other LPs.

White Light/White Heat was probably the most radical, focusing almost exclusively on their noisiest arrangements, over-amped guitars, and most willfully abrasive songs. The 17-minute "Sister Ray" was their most extreme (and successful) effort in this vein. Unsurprisingly, the album failed to catch on commercially, topping out at number 199. By the summer of 1968, the band had a much graver problem on its hands than commercial success (or the lack of it). A rift developed between Reed and Cale, the most creative forces in the band and, as one could expect, two temperamental egos. Reed presented the rest of the band with an ultimatum, declaring that he would leave the group unless Cale was sacked. Morrison and Tucker reluctantly sided with Lou, and Doug Yule was recruited to take Cale's place. The group's third album, 1969's The Velvet Underground, was an even more radical left turn than White Light/White Heat. The volume and violence had nearly vanished; the record featured far more conventional rock arrangements that were sometimes so restrained it seems as though they were making an almost deliberate attempt to avoid waking the neighbors.

Yet the sound was nonetheless effective for that; the record contains some of Reed's most personal and striking compositions, numbers like "Pale Blue Eyes" and "Candy Says" ranking among his most romantic, although cuts like "What Goes On" proved they could still rock out convincingly (though in a less experimental fashion than they had with Cale). The approach may have confused listeners and critics, but by this time their label (MGM/Verve) was putting little promotional resources behind the band anyway. Even in the absence of Cale, the Velvets were still capable of generating compelling heat on-stage, as 1969: Velvet Underground Live (not released until the mid-'70s) confirms. MGM was by now in the midst of an infamous "purge" of its supposedly drug-related rock acts, and the Velvets were setting their sights elsewhere. Nevertheless, they recorded about an album's worth of additional material for the label after the third LP, although it remains unclear whether this was intended for a fourth album or not.

Many of the songs, though, were excellent, serving as a bridge between The Velvet Underground and 1970's Loaded; a lot of it was officially released in the 1980s and 1990s. The beginning of the 1970s seemed to herald considerable promise for the group, as they signed to Atlantic, but at this point the personnel problems that had always dogged them finally became overwhelming. Tucker had to sit out Loaded due to pregnancy, replaced by Yule's brother Billy. Doug Yule, according to some accounts, began angling for more power in the band. Unexpectedly, after a lengthy residency at New York's famous Max's Kansas City club, Reed quit the band near the end of the summer of 1970, moving back to his parents' Long Island home for several months before beginning his solo career, just before the release of Loaded, his final studio album with the Velvets. Loaded was by far the group's most conventional rock album, and the most accessible one for mainstream listeners.

"Rock and Roll" and "Sweet Jane" in particular were two of Reed's most anthemic, jubilant tunes, and ones that became rock standards in the '70s. But the group's power was somewhat diluted by the absence of Tucker, and by the decision to have Doug Yule handle some of the lead vocals. Due to Reed's departure, though, the group couldn't capitalize on any momentum it might have generated. Unwisely, the band decided to continue, though Morrison and Tucker left shortly afterward. That left Doug Yule at the helm of an act that was the Velvet Underground in name only, and the 1973 album that was billed to the group (Squeeze) is best forgotten, and not considered as a true Velvets release. With Reed, Cale, and Nico establishing important solo careers of their own, and such important figures as David Bowie, Brian Eno, and Patti Smith making no bones about their debts to the band, the Velvet Underground simply became more and more popular as the years passed. In the 1980s, the original albums were reissued, along with a couple of important collections of outtakes.

Hoping to rewrite the rules one last time, Reed, Cale, Morrison, and Tucker attempted to defy the odds against successful rock reunions by re-forming in the early '90s (Nico had died in 1988). A European tour, and a live album, was completed in 1993 to mixed reviews; before a planned American jaunt could start, Reed and Cale (who have feuded constantly over the past few decades) fell out yet again, bringing the reunion to a sad close. Sterling Morrison's death from illness in 1995 seemed to permanently ice any prospect of more projects under the Velvet Underground name, although a few of the surviving members played together when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. By that time, an impressive five-CD box set (containing all four of the studio albums issued when Reed was in the band, as well as a lot of other material) was available to enshrine the group's legacy for the ages.

Cale and Reed continued with solo careers into the 21st century, but Reed underwent a liver transplant in April 2013, and although he subsequently proclaimed his strength and intention to continue performing and songwriting, he died of end-stage liver disease at his home on Long Island in October of that year. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi Velvet Underground, Andy Warhol Foundation Settle Banana Album Dispute | Billboard Velvet Underground, Andy Warhol Foundation Settle Banana Album Dispute COMMENTS The Velvet Underground and The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts have split their differences over the iconic cover art for the 1967 album The Velvet Underground & Nico. The Andy Warhol-created artwork became the subject of legal controversy after reports circulated that the Foundation planned to license the design for iPod and iPad ancillary products. In January, 2012, Velvet Underground, the influential band of Lou Reed and John Cale, sued in New York federal court with the claim that the artwork had become "a symbol, truly an icon, of the Velvet Underground" for decades. On Tuesday, a New York federal judge dismissed the case after an attorney for The Andy Warhol Foundation wrote a letter announcing that a confidential settlement had been reached between the parties.

The resolution puts an end to the provocative case. When the album first came out in the 1960s, the banana design was not registered with the Copyright Office and the album was reportedly not published with a copyright notice. Also, there was the suggestion that Warhol based his banana cover artwork on an advertisement. Originally, in this lawsuit, The Velvet Underground sought a declaratory judgment that the image was in the public domain, and that the Warhol Foundation couldn't assert any copyright ownership over it. But that claim went away after the Warhol Foundation offered the band a covenant not to sue on copyright grounds. That left the trademark issue. In its lawsuit, the Velvet Underground said that the Warhol Foundation's licensing activities were "likely to cause confusion or mistake as to the association of Velvet Underground with the goods sold in commerce by such third parties." To which, attorneys for the Warhol Foundation pointed out that the band broke up in 1972, and hadn't done any of its own licensing in more than a decade.

(About 12 years ago, the banana image was used in an Absolut Vodka ad.) Now, thanks to a settlement, there won't be any trial to discuss the true origins of one of rock music's most famous album covers nor which side is most closely associated by the public with the banana. Nor will there be any ap-peal.

Question: Who designed the cover of the album The Velvet Underground & Nico?
Answer: ANDY WARHOL